PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK IN AT THE VOLUNTEER TABLE IN THE HALLWAY INSIDE. GLOVES MUST BE WORN AT ALL TIMES.

The responsibilities of the Physical Exam/ Ear Tip station are:
1. to verify the sex of the cat
2. to give each cat a quick, but thorough physical exam
3. to record any significant exam findings that will require attention on the paw tag (ex: abscess right fore leg, lateral aspect of elbow)
4. to administer 0.5 ml PPG (procaine penicillin G) subcutaneously (half the dose for very small kittens)
5. to administer 0.1 ml Ivomec subcutaneously (half the dose for very small kittens)
6. to remove the tip of the left ear (leave the hemostat on the ear AND REMOVE THE COTTON BALL!!!)
7. to deliver the cat to the neuter station (males) or to the spay prep station (females)
Males: a Neuter transport volunteer will carry the males to the Neuter stations
Females: pass the females to the spay prep station one station ahead
Alternatively, verbally alert the Neuter Transporter or the Spay Prep volunteers and place males and females on the Neuter/Spay Prep holding table to be picked up.

You should begin drawing up the penicillin antibiotic and Ivomec as soon as you arrive in the morning. Use 3cc syringes with 21 ga needles for the penicillin. There is one dose for cats: 0.5 ml SQ once. If you have a very small kitten (3-4 moths old weighing 3-4 lbs), half the dose! Use 1 cc syringes for the Ivomec. There is one dose for cats: 0.1 ml SQ once. If you have a very small kitten (3-4 months old weighing 3-4 lbs), half the dose! This dosage of Ivomec treats ear mites, round and hook worms. Ivomec solution is very thick and can be difficult to draw out of the bottle. Insert a 20 ga needle into the bottle of Ivomec to facilitate aspiration into syringes. Leave the 20 ga needle in the top of the bottle and attach the syringes to it to avoid repuncturing the top of the bottle over and over. You will need to remove the 25 ga needle from the 1 cc syringes and then replace it after drawing up the Ivomec dose.

Draw up approximately 12 doses of each to start with. If a kitten comes to your station, you can squirt out half the medication before injecting the kitten. Injections should be given subcutaneously in the scruff of the neck. It is NOT necessary to aspirate before injecting SQ.

MONITOR the cats carefully for normal respiration (>6/minute), heartbeat (>100/minute), and gum color (pink). If the cat is not breathing well or its gums are blue, pull firmly on the tongue, press a fingernail on the nose leather and call for assistance from a veterinarian.

A physical exam should be performed on each cat. Be systematic and thorough, but work quickly. Remember, anesthetic time is limited!!! Any problems found should be reported to the Supervisor, but keep working and moving the cat through the line while waiting for the supervisor to arrive. If you finish with the cat before the supervisor arrives, send him/her on to the next station and the Supervisor can evaluate the cat there. It is the policy of Operation Cat Nap that unless treatment can be entirely performed at the time of neutering (ex: draining an abscess), humane euthanasia will be performed. Ongoing treatment cannot usually be safely and reliably administered to a feral cat. The Supervisor will make this determination.

Be sure to inspect the body for abscesses and wounds. Tom cats commonly have abscesses around the face, neck, fore limbs or dorsal rump. These can be treated at other stations.

Do not attempt to treat problems you find at this station. Do record them on the paw tag! Likewise, record dirty ears: they can be cleaned at the final station. This is a good opportunity to gain experience palpating pregnant and lactating cats. If a queen is lactating, circle this on the paw tag. If she is obviously pregnant, circle this on the paw tag. Pregnancy will be confirmed at the Spay stations.

VERIFY the sex of the cat and check the sex on the paw tag. IT IS A GREAT WASTE OF LIMITED TIME FOR A VETERINARIAN TO ATTEMPT TO SPAY A MALE, NOT TO MENTION THE UNNECESSARY TRAUMA FOR THE CAT. An animal without testicles is not necessarily female. (Neutered or cryptorchid males have been mistaken for females.)

The distal tip of the left ear is removed. The purpose of tipping the left ear is to identify the animal as having been spayed or neutered. If the ear is already tipped, bring the cat to the Medications station for reversal and notify the Supervisor. First, clean the left ear tip. Start by gently placing a dry cotton swab in the external ear canal to prevent moisture from getting down into the ear canal. This could cause an ear infection!!! Next, gently wipe the left ear tip with Nolvasan cotton swabs. Do this quickly 2-3 times. You do not need to rinse the ear tip. Next, place a sterile straight hemostat across the left pinna exposing 1/2 inch of the ear tip. Use sterile scissors to cut the tip off, leaving the hemostat on the ear. NOW, REMOVE THE COTTON BALL FROM THE EAR CANAL!!! Use new scissors and hemostats for each cat. Soak dirty scissors in warm soapy water. The instrument detail station will pick up the dirty scissors. The hemostat will remain in place until the cat is in recovery and will be removed just prior to returning the cat to the trap. Ears are tipped, rather than notched since notching may occur as the result of fighting, especially in tom cats and may be mistaken as a sign of previous TNR.

This is a busy station. You have several things to do to each cat before passing them to the next station. You must, however, work very quickly and efficiently! When a cat reaches your station, you should be reaching to administer injections immediately, place the cotton ball in the ear, swipe the ear with Nolvasan and remove the ear tip and the cotton ball – all within less than a minute. Then, you should quickly examine the cat, verify the sex and record any problems on the paw tag. Once you have finished your work on a cat, quickly and without delay, call the Neuter Transport volunteer to deliver males to a neuter station. Females should be passed to a spay prep station which is one station ahead. Alternatively, verbally alert the Neuter Transporter or the Spay Prep volunteers and place males and females on the Neuter/ Spay Prep holding table to be picked up. BE SURE to arrange them so they are picked up in a FIRST IN/ FIRST OUT manner! REMEMBER ANESTHETIC TIME IS LIMITED!!!

At the end of the clinic, clean up your station. As you repack the kit, verify that all of the supplies that belong in your kit are there. (See Inventory Sheet included in your kit.)

PLEASE TURN IN THIS INSTRUCTION SHEET WITH YOUR STATION KIT AT THE END OF THE DAY. THANK YOU.